10
Antoninus
Pius
11
Marcus
Aurelius
16
Maximian
Called "pious" for his treatment of Hadrian, Antoninus held the longest reign of the
138 – 161
Five Good Emperors with few problems: he is remarkable for his reign's
CE
remarkability.
161 – 180
CE
Maximian was the first co-Augustus with Diocletian and, as a result, had a large
286 – 305 impact in the Tetrarchy. However, he showed his true colors when he tried to regain
CE
the throne after his abdication, which reflects unfavorably in his ranking.
22
Gratian
23
375 – 383
CE
The son of Valentinian I, Gratian was known for his severe anti-Pagan policies,
which included removing the Altar of Victory and ending the office of pontifex
maximus.
Caracalla Famous for murdering his brother, Geta, Carcalla was not a good person, but did
211 – 217 several progressive things, such as building a huge bath complex and giving all men
CE
citizenship.
Domitian The son of Vespasian, Domitian, a.k.a. Dominus et Deus, was incredibly unpopular,
probably for his frequent executions, and was given a damnatio memoriae after his
81 – 96 CE
assassination.
24
Elagabalus 218 – 222
CE
Maximinus
Thrax 235 – 238 Maximinus Thrax the first of the "Barracks" emperors, a confused time where there
CE
was no predominant dynasty: additionally, he never entered the city Rome!
Caligula Between making a horse a senator and waging war against the sea, Caligula was not
37 – 41 CE
just a clown: he truly was the whole circus.
35
39
The last of the Five Good Emperors, who was able to expand Rome past recent
territorial setbacks, and famously was the author of the Meditations.
42
43
Commodus
45
Nero
180 – 192
CE
Elagabalus is known for his obsession with religion and... not much else.
Proof of why nepotism does not work: believing himself to be a reincarnation of
Hercules, Commodus' ego dominated a reign which was characterized by his
subordinates' corruption.
The first emperor so bad, a mass rebellion booted him out of office (and to his
death). Indeed, the extent to which he exhibited his insanity earned him the bottom
54 – 68 CE
spot on this list.
OJCL Fall Torch page 3